


Hook, Line and Sinker

by Bytes



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, MerMay, Yosuke is the merm, gay merman time, merman
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:38:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24540184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bytes/pseuds/Bytes
Summary: Yu Narukami’s hobbies are atypical for a high school student, with fishing being one of his favorite pastimes. A summer trip with the Dojima family provides the perfect opportunity to reel in some interesting catches. And reel in some interesting catches he does.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Narukami Yu, Hanamura Yosuke/Persona 4 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji
Comments: 16
Kudos: 72





	Hook, Line and Sinker

**Author's Note:**

> this was supposed to be for mermay but y’know. It’s June now. That’s how it is

Fishing. There was no better way to enjoy a summer break, in Yu Narukami’s opinion anyway. It provided an opportunity for self reflection while one sat, pole in hand, waiting for a bite as the lull of moving water put your heart at ease. That’s why as soon as the weather was warm enough, Yu took a trip with the Dojima family to the coast to enjoy some ocean fishing. They weren’t interested in fishing like he was, but some fun and relaxation on the beach was appealing.

“You have your phone on you, right?” came the gruff but concerned voice of Dojima. “And you better not wander off too far.”

“I do. I’m just going to head to the dock over there,” the silver haired boy confirmed with a nod as he pointed to a distant tourist’s dock jutting out on the horizon.

“Alright. Just give me a call if you need anything. I’ll let you know when Nanako’s done swimming for the day.”

Yu nodded and looked down to the excitedly bouncing Nanako. She was wearing a cute pink swimsuit with frills and flowers on it, along with some inflatable arm floaties. She looked like she was going to explode if she didn’t get to go play soon. With a smile, Yu warmly advised, “have fun and be safe. Stay where your feet can touch, okay?”

“I will, big bro!” the small girl chimed happily. “If you catch any cool fish, you promised to show me!”

“Of course,” he affirmed, patting the girl’s head affectionately before picking up his fishing supplies and giving his uncle a nod before departing.

“Fishing is a strange hobby for a high schooler to have…” the detective mused as he watched Yu walk down the beach with a cooler in tow. “Well, it’s harmless at least.” He turned his gaze back to Nanako. “Ready to hit the beach?”

“Yes!” Nanako exclaimed happily, taking that as her cue to bound towards the waves as Dojima watched her with a smile.

After trekking for about fifteen minutes, Yu found himself at the dock that he had spotted earlier. Assessing it, he found it had too many people. Too much chatter from the beach-goers as well, that certainly would scare off some of the fish. “Perhaps there will be a less crowded dock further down the beach,” the teen murmured to himself. Dojima had warned him not to stray too far, but a little further couldn’t hurt, right? All he had to do was walk back the way he came and he’d run into them again. It was fine.

Dragging a cooler through the sand was a huge pain, especially when one had to do it for a long time with the sun beating down relentlessly overhead. But with that hike came a reward, as Yu discovered a cove tucked away from the rest of the beach, past a small rocky outcrop. And there was a small dock! This was much better.

Plopping the cooler down with a thud against the wood, Yu paused to catch his breath. Hopefully this would all be worth it. The cooler served as a storage trunk, containing his bait, line, bobbers, and extra hooks while his fishing pole was strapped to his back. It also worked as an impromptu seat when he got tired of standing, so that was a bonus. He usually tossed back the fish he caught, as he fished mostly for the fun of it. He’d cooked a couple in the past, and back in Inaba he frequently traded his catches with the local fisherman, but the cooler was hardly ever used to actually hold any fish.

Firstly, Yu scattered some food out in the open water, hoping that would help attract some fish. After preparing his rod with the proper hook and bobber, he plucked a live worm from his cooler and carefully hooked it through its midsection so it couldn’t fall off as easily. Now prepared, the silver haired teen held up the rod behind his head. With a deep breath, he gathered his strength before flinging the rod forward and casting the line. The worm whizzed through the air before plopping into the blue ocean waters about twenty yards away. Now, it was time to wait.

This part was calming. He could listen to the waves crash into the shore and the occasional cry of a seagull overhead. This was one of the few times he could let his mind rest. There was no need to worry about anything except the red and white bobber that was floating out in the waves.

As expected, it was a while before anything bit. But the familiar tug of the line snapped Yu into action mode. He clutched the fishing pole with anticipation. It had been a nibble. If he reeled it in now, he would just scare the fish away. After a couple faint tugs, a hard pull indicated it was hooked. Yu began reeling in the line and the fish thrashed about as it realized it was caught. It was fairly strong, so he had to employ his strategy of winding in intervals so as to not snap the line but also tire the fish out. The tactic worked, and soon enough a large greenish-grey fish— likely a bass of some sort— sprouted from the water and hit the deck with a thud, flopping about wildly. It was the first catch of the day!

The fish was too big to store in the cooler to show Nanako if he wanted to put anything else in there, so this one has to be let go. That didn’t stop Yu from snapping a photo of it before gently pinning it with his boot while he carefully worked the hook out of its lip so the damage would be minimal. After the fish was free, he nudged it off the side of the dock and back into the water with a splash. It was gone in an instant, rocketing back beneath the depths from which it had come. Time for the next fish!

Fishing was pretty successful, with Yu landing quite a few more catches after that. It was fun to see every new kind of fish he reeled in, as he was used to the very limited spread from the river back home where he usually fished. He saved a few in his cooler after taking out the tackle box and filling it with water. Only a few small fish, as he didn’t want to lug a cooler full of water back. The fish were colorful, so Nanako was sure to be satisfied. He’d been at it for a few hours now; his cousin was bound to be getting tired and ready to return to the inn they were staying at for a rest. One more, Yu decided. Then he would pack up and head back.

Hooking the worm and casting it out into the ocean, Yu silently hoped for something interesting to find itself on the other end of that line.

Interesting wouldn’t even begin to describe what happened next.

The sharp tug at his line had him quickly reeling in. Judging from the feel, it was likely a smaller fish. Yanking the pole, the fish emerged with a splash. But, something else emerged just afterwards. All Yu had time to process was a flash of orange before his catch was tugged back under the water by something so strong it caused him to stagger and nearly let the rod slip out of his hands. Was that a bigger fish that had been trying to eat the one he’d hooked? How exciting!

It was now a tug of war. He’d never hooked something this strong before. It was likely the line would snap at any second. It was heavy-duty line, but whatever this was, it was putting up quite the fight.

Pulling with all his might, Yu was slowly reeling in the thrashing fish. It took everything not to let his rod get yanked out of his hands and keep his balance as well. Suddenly, the resistance stopped, causing the silver haired boy to fly back and hit the deck with a loud thud. He was going to feel that later for sure. “Ugh…” he groaned as he sat up, peering over the edge of the dock. There was his fish: a mackerel. But, this mackerel was firmly locked in the jaws of… someone? He found himself staring into a pair of hazel eyes that peered right back at him. There was a whole person before him with his fish in their mouth. He couldn’t even process this. “Um… hello..?” he found himself asking.

It blinked, looking up at him as recognition flashed in their eyes. Their jaw fell open, the now half mangled mackerel falling back into the water with a splash. They seemed surprised for a moment before fear flashed across their features. They were going to flee, they were turning, about to swim away, but no..! Yu needed to know more, who was this, what just happened, hey, please wait—

“H-Hey…! Don’t go…!” he blurted out, causing it to pause and look back up to him. “Just uh, hold on… please.” He held up his hand in a gesture of peace. Yu took hold of his fishing rod once more and finished reeling in the fish, which now had a chunk taken out of it and was barely still alive. Carefully, he unhooked it before holding it back out. “Here… you want this, right?”

The person before him looked to be a male. He had warm brownish hair, slicked down from being wet. Flecks of brownish-orange freckles adorned his face and shoulders from what he could tell. The rest of his body was hidden beneath the water. The mysterious fish-eating boy glanced at the fish, then back to Yu, seeming puzzled.

“Really, take it. It’s already half eaten, you might as well finish it,” Yu insisted.

A hand appeared from the water, hesitantly reaching out to take the offering. This hand wasn’t normal though. The fingers, they were webbed. Whoever this was, he definitely wasn’t human. He took the fish, carefully watching Yu as he did so before vanishing beneath the surface of the water.

“Wait..!” Yu cried, clambering over so he could see over the edge more. “Come back..!”

Nothing. What the hell just happened? What had he just seen? Was the sun getting to him? Yu’s head was spinning as he laid down on his stomach, reaching out to dip his hand in the water. “I’ve got more fish..! Don’t go!”

When nothing happened, Yu let out a sigh and slumped over, burying his head in the crook of his other arm. This was definitely going to turn into a headache as he wracked his brain for answers later.

Yu was content to lay there for a little bit, feeling drained from his tug-of-war. That was quickly cut short when something poked his hand that was submerged. It almost felt like the nibble of a fish. Lifting his head, he was surprised to see that boy was back, eyes peeking out of the waves while the rest of him remained hidden underwater. They both stared at each other for a moment before Yu murmured with disbelief, “you... came back.”

Surfacing so that the rest of his head was visible, the strange boy seemed to size him up for a moment before replying, “...you sounded so sad, I’d be a jerk to ignore that.”

The silver haired teen was rendered speechless for a moment from surprise. He wasn’t sure what he had expected, but it definitely hadn’t been such a casual response. Well, it’s not like this was a fantasy novel or something. “...What’s your name?” he settled on asking.

The other boy raised his eyebrows in surprise for a moment before relaxing his features. “Yosuke.”

“Yosuke, huh? Mine’s Yu. It’s nice to meet you,” Yu offered and extended his hand.

It was likely they could both agree that the situation unfolding was nothing short of bizarre. Strangely enough however, the newly identified Yosuke didn’t sense any danger from this particular person. Now he just had to puzzle out what he was holding his hand out for. This had to be a greeting gesture.

Reaching up, Yosuke grasped the other boy’s hand. They both just stared at each other then, waiting for the other to do something while they held hands.

“Uh… right. Hah,” Yu hummed embarassingly and shook his hand before letting go. He noted how much cooler the other’s skin felt, along with the sensation of the webbing between his fingers. “...Are you free?”

“Huh?”

“Like, do you wanna… stay a while and chat maybe?” Yu asked hopefully, ignoring the thudding in his chest from anticipation. “I’d like to, y’know, get to know you better, Yosuke..” he murmured. Why did this feel like he was asking this guy out?

“...I guess I can’t say no to that.” Yosuke found himself amused at how flustered Yu was getting just trying to have a conversation with him. But for whatever reason, Yosuke found himself just as intrigued about this human as he must feel towards him. “Got any more fish?”

Glancing to his cooler that held just a few small ones he’d caught to show Nanako, he shook his head. “I toss most of the ones I catch back into the water. The ones I saved are just pretty ones I wanted to show my cousin. Way too small to be a meal or anything. I can catch you some more though..?”

“I’ll take you up on that then.” Yosuke would never say no to a meal he didn’t have to hunt for himself. He watched as Yu nodded and pierced some kind of worm-thing on the hook. It was slightly impressive when he sent the hook whizzing through the air above his head.

“So… what brought you here?” Yu asked, trying to start conversation.

“There were way more fish than normal around here so I was catching myself something to eat. Didn’t expect my catch to get yanked right out of my mouth though.”

“Can’t say I expected to reel in a person when I felt something on my line either,” Yu remarked with a slight chuckle.

Yosuke studied the silver haired boy’s face as he spoke. He was face to face with an entirely different species and yet he hadn’t mentioned anything about it. He asked who he was instead of what he was, which was quite surprising. “You said you throw most of the fish you catch back in the ocean. What’s the point of catching them then?”

“It gives me time to enjoy nature and clear my head. And it’s fun to see what I can reel in I suppose. The ocean holds so many mysteries.”

Yosuke quirked a brow. “You aren’t wrong about that.”

The pair made idle chit-chat for a while as Yu waited for a fish to bite. Yosuke was a charming guy with a wit that made itself evident the more they opened up to one another. A tug on Yu’s line silenced the both of them as the fisherman narrowed his brows and focused on the rod in his hands.

A couple nibbles later and finally there was a hard tug, indicating a bite. The fish began thrashing around as Yu struggled to reel it in. “It’s a big one,” he hissed through gritted teeth.

Yosuke watched as the other boy flung the fishing rod back, with a fish bursting out of the water a few feet away from them. It soared through the air until it landed on the dock with a wet thud, where it then began to flop around. It was a pretty big sized fish too, definitely not one he would’ve been able to catch with just his hands. He had to remind himself not to drool at the thought that he would get to eat all of it. He watched Yu get to work, carefully restraining the fish with his boot to remove the hook embedded in its lip.

It certainly would be rude of him to stay down here while Yu was up there and had just caught him a meal, wouldn’t it? That, and Yosuke was getting tired of treading the water to keep his head above. “Hey,” he spoke up.

“Hm?”

“Back up a little, yeah?”

The fisherman quirked a brow but obliged, picking up the fish with his gloved hands so that the scales would not cut him if it squirmed. He took a few steps back and looked at Yosuke curiously.

“Farther.”

A couple more steps.

“Come on, dude. Farther.”

“Why do you—“ Yu had begun to ask as he stepped back even more. Yosuke vanished underneath the water, leaving him to stand there in a state of confusion for a moment. Before he could even question _that_ , there was a large splash as something shot out of the water. Something big and orange.

Yosuke collided with the deck, making a loud thud as Yu got sprayed with water and had to close his eyes. When he looked back, he saw Yosuke… _All_ of Yosuke, that is. All he could do was stare in awe as the other boy shuffled, maneuvering a large orange _fish tail_ so he could sit upright instead of laying on his stomach on the deck. Getting a good look at him, Yosuke’s top half was mostly human in appearance aside from almost fin-shaped ears, webbed fingers, and slits along the sides of his neck that had to be gills. The bottom half— where his legs should be— was that of a fish. It almost resembled an orange koi in coloration, with darker flecks scattered in a sea of orange scales. The fins that adorned his tail and along his sides were much longer than that of a koi fish, with white feathering the edges.

“If you want to just stand there and stare, can you at least give me the fish first?” Yosuke scoffed, feeling quite embarrassed from the attention.

Yu blinked before averting his gaze. “Sorry, it’s just… your scales are really pretty,” he admitted.

“Huh?”

“Ah, nothing.” He felt bad for staring but he also couldn’t stop the fluttering in his chest. He stepped forward and offered up the fish. “So you’re… a mermaid? Merman?”

“I guess you could call us Merfolk. The whole ‘mermaid’ title is too romanticized.” With that, Yosuke took the fish and promptly chomped directly into its head. It’s movements ceased immediately, the creature going limp in his hands. He had some sharp teeth from the looks of it.

It was a little startling to see someone just bite into a live fish like that, but Yu supposed there was no other way to eat fish underwater. It’s not like you could cook it. Sitting down, Yu watched him chow down with a mix of intrigue and morbid curiosity.

“You want some?” Yosuke asked, muffled from all the fish in his mouth. He held up the half eaten carcass and tilted his head.

“Oh, uh, that’s alright. Humans don’t really eat raw fish, only in sushi…”

“Sushi? What’s that?”

“A food we make with rice, raw fish and other ingredients that get wrapped up in seaweed.”

“Consider me interested. Never had rice, but I’ve heard of it.”

“Yeah, I think you’d like it,” Yu mused, already considering making some for him. But that would mean Yosuke would have to agree to see him again. This was probably a once in a lifetime encounter, after all.

Their conversation continued as the copper haired merfolk indulged in his meal. Yosuke didn’t seem to know much about human life and culture, only basic things. Yu refrained from asking too many questions about him so as to not scare him off, though his mind was bursting. What he did learn was that Yosuke’s diet was almost entirely fish, and that he was able to breathe both under and above water.

The cell phone ringing in Yu’s pocket interrupted the pair. He apologized and answered, realizing that quite a bit of time had passed. It was Dojima, asking where the heck he’d run off to and if he realized that the sun was going to be setting soon. “Sorry, uncle. I lost track of time. You know how I get when I’m fishing, haha… yeah. Alright. Will do. Goodbye.” Snapping his phone shut, Yu let out a sigh. Dojima wanted him to head back so they could get dinner. That meant it was time to say goodbye to his new friend. Maybe forever.

“Was that one of those phone things you guys have? You can really talk with each other from anywhere in the world?”

“Anywhere with cell service, yeah.”

“Wow. We don’t have anything like that! Except for conch shells, sometimes you can blow into those and make a loud noise. If I had one of those phones, I’d be able to call you from anywhere!”

“They don’t… work underwater,” Yu informed him with an apologetic smile. “Water and electronics do not mix well.”

“Seriously? Damn…” Yosuke huffed. “So what did ‘uncle’ want?”

“Well, I’m here visiting with my uncle and cousin. They’re out on the beach and want to head back to our inn… and I have to go with them.”

“..Oh.”

“Yeah…” Yu murmured. They both remained silent for a little bit; the atmosphere had quickly shifted from casual to somber just like that.

“Well, you shouldn’t keep ‘em waiting,” Yosuke started. “Thanks for the fish…. and for, um, treating me like a person.” He twiddled his thumbs, refusing to make eye contact with the silver haired boy. “I did notice. We’re supposed to stay away from you guys since we’re basically like myths to you. Can’t imagine what would happen if that got out, y’know?”

“Mm… so what made you talk to me?”

“I’m not sure. I just got the feeling you’re not like that. And I think… actually, I know I’m right.”

“Many wouldn’t hesitate to cut you open or stick you in a tank to show off to the world. What makes you think I haven’t been planning that?”

“Because you would’ve done so by now. I’m almost defenseless on land like this. It’s not like I can run.” He made his tail flop loudly on the dock for emphasis. “I guess that makes me curious what your intentions are.”

“My intentions?” Yu echoed. “I was quite surprised when I saw you, but… you’re a person, just like me. I just… wanted to get to know you, that’s all.”

“Yeah? I guess I… wanted the same thing. Today’s been fun,” Yosuke mused as he stared off at the ocean horizon. The sky was slowly turning pink and orange. “Feel like my whole world’s just opened up.”

Yu watched him as he spoke, taking in his features. Everything from his sharp jaw line to the freckles that dotted his shoulders and back. They might be scales, actually. He couldn’t explain this pull he felt towards Yosuke, but it seems like they were fated to know each other. He swallowed hard before speaking up. “Hey, Yosuke?”

“Yeah?” the other boy questioned as he turned his head to look back at him.

“Would it be alright if… I came to see you again tomorrow?” He wouldn’t say it, but something inside him desperately did not want this to be the last time he ever saw him.

Yosuke blinked, seeming to mull over his question for a moment before his gaze softened. With a slight smile, he nodded. “Yeah. I’d… like that.”

Yu smiled back at him before standing to start packing up his fishing gear. “I’ll come right back to this dock then.”

“I’ll be waiting. You better not stand me up.”

“I would never,” Yu assured with a smile. “And… thanks. For giving me a chance.”


End file.
